Chinese Trade War, War with Iran, and Ukranian Snap Elections

US-China Trade War Will Hurt American Families

As President Trump and the Chinese elevate their ongoing trade dispute, lead economists are suggesting that American families will be the ones to pay. Earlier this month, Trump significantly increased tariffs on Chinese trade goods. The immediate consequence could be a 25% tax hike on everything imported from China. China is currently the source of 41% of american apparel, 72% of footwear, 84% of travel goods, and 37% of electronics. The average cost of these increases on American family of four will be about $2,300 a month. As the tariffs increasingly seem like they are here to stay without any change in Chinese policy, it becomes increasingly likely that American families will bear the brunt of the costs of Trump’s trade war.

A War with Iran Would Be the Mother of All Quagmires

As the American and Iranian governments continue to trade war barbs this week, the prospect of war between the two countries seems like a genuine possibility. Last week the Trump administration leaked plans to deploy 120,000 troops to Iran. The White House also leaked intel which suggested that Iran was placing missiles on small ships in the Persian Gulf to attack U.S. boats. In response to what they described as “genocidal threats” from the U.S. government, Iran has quadrupled their uranium production. If war actually does break out in the region, the U.S. would be in trouble. Counterinsurgency math suggests that the U.S. would need 1.6 million troops to control Iran. Iran is also much better positioned to retaliate with asymmetric tactics like the launch of a counter-strike against Israel.

Ukraine’s New Comedian President Dissolves Parliament

After his inauguration on Monday, Ukraine’s new president Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced that he would dissolve that nation’s parliament. He also announced that he would dismiss prosecutor General Yuriy Lutsenko, a controversial figure with ties to President Donald Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani. The Ukrainian president has the authority to dissolve parliament and call for elections, but the timing might prove controversial. Elections were originally scheduled for October 27, which would mean that the parliament must dissolve by May 27 for the snap elections to take place within a legal timeframe.